Chicken is back on the menu…or in this case the agenda. Commissioner Krauskopf, who now believes that the ordinance should be rescinded, is bringing it back a few weeks after voting to approve a 2-chicken limit. The more than 2-year saga into backyard poultry has shown the inability of our Commission to even make a simple decision. It is not about whether chickens should be allowed or not (more about that later) but the very act of how decisions are made or not made. The decision on backyard chickens is illustrative on how the City functions.

It is my recollection that the reason this ordinance was even brought before the Commission more than 2 years ago was because the former City Manager wanted it. I hadn’t heard of any ground swell of support except from Ground Floor Farms. At that time, I voted for only Ground Floor Farms to have the birds. It was to be brought back after some time had passed to see if it should be extended. From the very beginning, Commissioners Krauskopf and Clarke were in favor of allowing backyard chickens.

During the intervening time, I investigated other cities that had the animals and visited Ground Floor Farms a number of times to see for myself. I concluded that chickens were harmless. While some would have you believe that they are a vector for disease, I have found no definitive scientific proof. As I have stated before, I have a neighbor with an aviary that is legal. So, then, why not a few chickens? If 30 or 40 families want to have fresh eggs, then I favor allowing those families to do so under controlled circumstances.

I have come to the conclusion that it isn’t about the actual chickens but what they have come to represent. Young families and millennials that want a more natural way of living versus some in my generation of boomers who don’t. There is a belief by some that backyard chickens represent poverty and by having them in their neighborhoods, their properties will be worth less. And like so many things, there is a fear of anything new by some.

However, whether to allow the legal keeping of chickens should not be this gut wrenching matter that the City of Stuart still cannot resolve after more than 2 years. This indecision is emblematic of how we cannot come to a consensus on almost any matter. This is a make-believe controversy that is not worth the time that has been devoted to it. So once again, chicken is on the menu of the City Commission.